Poland: Eurovision 2016 participation “not in question”

Following recent speculation concerning Poland’s participation at the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest, the European Broadcasting Union has confirmed that Poland’s participation is “not in question” and the nation will compete at the upcoming contest.

After a recent signing of a new media bill within Poland, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)expressed their concerns to the Polish government in which they believe that the new change in legislation could “turn Polish radio and TV into media instruments for the government and not for its citizens”. The new legislation allows more control to be given to the national government over state media.

Due to the signing, speculation has risen in relation to Poland’s participation in the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest, which was officially confirmed in November last year, as well as their participation in future editions of the competition.

Talking of the current situation, the EBU’s Senior Communications Officer Dave Goodman commented:

The EBU’s mission is to strengthen and support public service media and we believe strong, independent public service media is integral to maintaining a thriving democratic society. TVP, and Polskie Radio, remain full EBU Members and their status as well as involvement in EBU activities, such as participation in the Eurovision Song Contest, has not been called into question.

The Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, Jon Ola Sand, further commented:

We are looking forward to Poland’s participation in Stockholm. To the EBU and its Members, the Eurovision Song Contest is a non-political event which embodies the best of public service values. It is these that we will celebrate in May with all 43 broadcasters that have been confirmed as participating, including the Polish broadcaster TVP.

Poland has competed at the Eurovision Song Contest a total of 18 times since their debut in 1994, with their first ever participation bringing the nation their most successful result to date; second place.

Following a 2 year break, Poland made a return to the contest in 2014 and have since opted to select their entries via an internal selection. Last year, Monika Kuszyńska was selected to represent her country at the 2015 contest with her song In the name of love, in which she finished in 23rd position at the grand final.

TVP will once again opt for an internal selection in order to determine Poland’s entry for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in the host city of Stockholm. The Polish representative is expected to be revealed at the end of February.

Stay tuned to esctoday.com for the latest news on Poland and the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest

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Jessica was born and raised in the United Kingdom. Eurovision has been a huge part of her life for a number of years, getting to see the contest live for the first time in 2015. Jessica joined the ESCToday team in November 2013.